


Getting Back on the Mountain

by Why_Live_In_Reality



Series: A Hero and A Lady [1]
Category: Thunderbirds
Genre: F/M, Gen, LotsOfNoncanon, OS, OriginalTVCharacters, Set over 14 years, SomeCanon, Young Tracys, brothers being brothers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-29
Updated: 2019-05-29
Packaged: 2020-03-26 15:59:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,293
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19009075
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Why_Live_In_Reality/pseuds/Why_Live_In_Reality
Summary: It's 2056 and Jeff Tracy takes his three eldest sons to the Swiss Alps to stay at the Creighton-Ward's mountain retreat. Scott is reluctant. It's only been a year since his mother died in an avalanche.Series of events that occur over the 14 day holiday on the mountain.





	Getting Back on the Mountain

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, so just a quick word. I know that Thunderbird fans can be very picky about the ages of the Tracy boys. I for one, am using the original character bio's from the 1965 show and that means the boys go in the following order (oldest to youngest); Scott, Virgil, John, Gordon and Alan. Penelope's age fits right between Scott and Virgil's ages (in the original series, she is only 25; they are 26 and 24 respectively).  
> However, due to the TAG series, I've kinda mashed the old and new together. Using the original shows characters and updating their tech so it's more in line with the more modern Thunderbirds.  
> I'm also not going to try and get every last little canon detail right. I mainly wrote this because I've always adored the original Thunderbirds series and thought that Scott and Penelope would have made a very smart match.  
> So excuse the sketchy non-canon, the sometimes unrealistic plots (come on, it's the future guys), and just enjoy some brothers being brothers, Penny and Virgil acting like a couple, and two people slowly falling in love despite difficult circumstances.  
> Ok?  
> Ok. Happy Reading! x

**Day One**

This was the first time Scott had been back on the mountains since his mom died.

And worst of all... he was going to be stuck babysitting two of his younger brothers, Virgil and John, and one of Virgil’s friends, Penelope Creighton-Ward.

He begrudgingly had to admit that it was the Creighton-Ward’s cabin (though calling the massive house in front of him  a “cabin” was a bit of a stretch in Scott’s mind), but it didn’t mean that he wanted to be stuck looking after some high and mighty, pompous young girl who was no doubt a bit of priss and likely to think she could order him around just because her family were one of the richest in England.

Oh no!

Scott Tracy was not going to be bossed around by some –

“Duck!”

A snowball whistled out of nowhere and struck Scott in the arm, causing the teen to gasp at the shock of impact.

“Sorry!” A blonde haired girl ran down the stairs, all smiles and apologies. “I’m so sorry! I was aiming for Virg!”

“Hah! Fell for the “I-look-like-my-brother-from-a-distance” trick Penny!” Virgil beamed as he grabbed the young girl by the waist and dragged her over into a snow drift, high pitched squeals entering the air as Virgil refused to let go.

“Virgil Tracy! You uncouth, ill-mannered, BARBARIAN!” The girl wriggled from Virgil’s grasp and proceeded to shove handfuls of snow down Virgil’s coat.

“Ah! That’s COLD!”

“It’s supposed to be! It’s SNOW!” The young girl stood up triumphantly and turned back to Scott. “I really am sorry. Are you alright?”

Scott stared at her.

Pale blonde hair was falling around her face, highlighted in the weak sun by the snowflakes clinging to the gently waving strands. A pair of bright eyes regarded him warmly, a sentiment matched by the perfect smile on her lips.

This was Penelope?!

Scott had imagined some young girl who looked like a horse and spoke with extra vowels in places vowels shouldn’t be.

“Penny! Look at you! More beautiful than ever.” Jeff Tracy appeared behind his son, smiling warmly at the young girl.

“Jeff!” Penny rushed forward, being enveloped by his father’s arms. “I’m so glad to see you again.”

“Me too Penny. I see you’ve dealt with Virgil,”

“Yeah, real funny.” Virgil griped, unzipping his coat to rid himself of snow.

“and you remember Scott and John?”

“Yes.” Once again Scott found himself being watched by her.

Wait.

Remember? When did she first meet them?

“It’s been a while. I’m glad I’m meeting them again under happier circumstances.” Penelope reached out and easily tugged the ever quiet John into a firm hug. “Hello John. You’ve gotten taller! No, really! You only came up to here last year.” Penny gestured at her collar bone, eliciting a rare smile from John.

Scott suddenly remembered where he’d seen her before.

Their mom’s funeral.

Penny and her parents had been there. He’d seen her talking to Virgil, but Scott hadn’t moved from his father’s side that day. She mustn’t have talked to him directly.

“And Scott,” Penny opened her arms to him, “it’s so nice to see you again.”

Scott hugged her back politely, supposing he hadn’t earned a cute anecdote or snow attack yet.

“Anyway, you all must be cold! What am I doing keeping you out here?!” Penny stepped back and gestured towards the house. “Mother and Father are waiting inside. There’s a fire and hot drinks already for you. Please. Follow me- Argh!” The last of Penny’s words were stolen as Virgil dumped a giant ball of snow on her head in retaliation.

Scott sighed to himself as he helped his father carry the bags up the wooden steps, John trailing behind as Penny and Virgil restarted their snow war.

It was going to be a long fourteen days.

 

 

**Night Two**

Penny checked her reflection again.

Although the temperatures outside did not allow for satin gowns, the official opening dinner up at the resort did call for formal wear.

Resigning herself to a slightly chilly fate for the rest of the night, Penny left her room with quiet stab of displeasure. She had wanted to spend the night watching bad movies with Virgil, an event that would no doubt lead to a popcorn catching challenge, muting the film and making up new lines, laughing until they cried... but no. As daughter of a Lord, she was required to attend the dinner tonight with her parents.

“Lady Penelope?” Parker was standing on the stairs. “H’your parents were getting concerned.”

“It’s alright Parker. Just took me a little longer than I’d anticipated.”

“Very good m’lady.” Parker waited until she had passed before walking down after her.

Penny was surprised to see Jeff dressed in a suit and tie beside her parents.

“Are you coming with us Jeff?” She asked, hoping like mad Virgil was too.

“Yes Penny. It seems, like you, I’ve been coerced into this evenings dinner too.” Jeff winked and Penny struggled not to laugh.

“What about the boys?” she asked, looking around hopefully.

“Not tonight I’m afraid my dear,” Lord Creighton-Ward smiled at his daughter, “they decided to stay here.”

“Oh. Lucky them.” Penny smiled softly. Great. A boring night it was.

As they all turned toward the door, Penny caught sight of Scott Tracy standing in the kitchen. He was staring at her.

Penny felt a stab of annoyance, closely followed by the desire to check her reflection again.

Why was he staring?

Surely he’d seen someone in an evening dress before.

And why was she blushing?!

 

The headlights of the car swept away, leaving Penny to scramble up the steps by herself.

Definitely not a night to be out in a satin gown.

But at least she’d been spared an entire evening smiling and bobbing politely to foreign ministers and dignitaries. Thanks to Jeff’s quick thinking and Parker’s compliance, it had been decided that a 16-year old was not required to sit through the multitude of business proposals and speeches that followed the dinner. Giving her parents some sort of nonsense about how a growing girl needed to make sure she got a solid’s night sleep, Jeff had winked at Penny and nodded towards Parker in the corner. Penny had ran while she had the chance.

Swearing quietly, Penny slipped on the frozen wood of the veranda and only just managed to stay upright.

“Stupid sodding high heels,” She muttered, grabbing the front door and diving inside to the warmth. “worse than the stupid sodding dress.” Penny reached down and yanked the hated things off her feet. It felt wonderful to cuss freely without having to worry about her parents hearing her.

A quiet chuckle brought her to a shocked stop.

It was Scott again. He seemed to be the only one around and he’d frozen when he realised she’d heard him.

A pink flush graced his cheeks and he cleared his throat, half-twisted in the chair by the fire.

“Ar-are you alright Lady Penelope?”

Penny snorted at his rigid formalities.

“Yes. Fine. Just a tad cold. And you don’t have to call me Lady Penelope. Penny is just fine Scott.” She started for the stairs and paused.

“What are you still doing awake Scott?” Penny asked, turning back to the eldest Tracy.

Scott held up a book in way of explanation.

“Wasn’t tired. Figured I might read for a while by the fire. Seemed an appropriately mountain cabin thing to do.” He smiled, a little crookedly Penny noticed.

Which made him seem all the more sweet.

Wait, what was she saying?! She’d never met him properly before this holiday... was this her first teenage crush? What was the appropriate response?

“I suppose it is... though you forgot the hot chocolate.” She smiled back, hoping she’d managed to seem more friendly then dismissive.

“Ah. I always forget something.” Scott laughed. But only a second later, he bit his lip, smile gone and replaced by a certain shyness. ‘I-I don’t suppose, you’d like to join me? Warm up for a bit?”

Penny was slightly taken back.

While she’d known Virgil for years now, so long now that there was no sense of unease around him, Scott seemed much more reserved and mature. Penny had felt drawn to him almost immediately, if only slightly unsure of how to get to know the eldest Tracy.

No better chance than the present one then.

“I’ll go and get changed first. Surprisingly, dresses are not the warmest thing the wear in the Alps.” She joked, starting up the stairs. “You better not steal all the marshmallows before I get back.”

Scott’s laugh as she headed upstairs made Penny feel warmer than any fire possibly could.

 

 

**Day Four**

Scott was used to finding his brother’s sharing beds. After all, when they were a lot younger, Virgil used to always climb into Scott’s bed when he couldn’t sleep or had a nightmare. John had done the same. Gordon and Alan still did when they couldn’t get into Virgil’s or John’s beds.

But he certainly wasn’t expecting to find Virgil and Penny asleep together in the den.

Virgil was flat on his back and snoring heavily as usual, Penny draped over his middle with her head twisted upwards to rest on his chest. They were surrounded by blankets and pillows, so Scott guessed they’d planned to sleep here. Or maybe Parker had discovered them and simply tried to keep them warm rather than waking them.

Scott watched with a smile forming on his face as he simply watched the two teens in front of him continue to sleep.

They were complete opposites.

Virgil with his dark hair, stocky build and hacksaw of a snore, and Penny with her light hair, petite frame and delicate, fluttering breaths.

Not for the first time, Scott wondered why Virgil and Penny had become such close friends. Or how they were able to act so comfortably with each other.

Maybe it was attending the same fancy boarding school for months at a time together. Maybe they had little dorm parties with other friends and then ended up like this in the morning. They certainly acted like they didn’t have boundaries between them.

Neither of them were any good at keeping a respectable distance between each other. They were constantly draped over one another, leaning on each other, Virgil had bodily lifted Penny out of his way one morning and no one had said anything. And after only one day here, Scott had seen Penny and Virgil fall into unison while reading, eating, or even playing in the snow, always without a word spoken to each other too.

Scott hadn’t expected to feel jealous during this trip, but apparently his mind had other ideas.

However, he wasn’t entirely sure what he was jealous about...

The close friendship Virgil had that Scott seemed to be lacking outside of his own family? Or was it purely the physicality between Virg and Penny he was jealous of?

The idea of having Penny fall asleep like that against Scott’s own chest... his blood tingled at the thought.

Scott dismissed the thought quickly. Just teenage hormones. He was not going to try and intrude on his brother’s friendship. Not even if Penny had a gorgeous smile and a laugh that seemed to light up whatever room she was in, the sound drawing Scott closer like a flame...

Penny gave a slight jolt, a brief huff of air escaping her as her eyes opened. Raising a hand to her head, Penny blinked several times as she woke.

Scott froze. There was no way he could play this off, he’d been watching them sleep! She was going to think he was an absolute creep!

Penny seemed to focus on him eventually.

“Scott?” She asked, her voice cracking slightly at its first use of the day.

Scott couldn’t exactly pretend to haven’t heard her, she was staring right at him.

“Uh, morning.” He offered, wincing at how clumsy it sounded.

“Morning? Oh. We must of fell asleep watching TV again.” Penny pushed herself up and rolled her eyes at Virgil’s still snoring form. “What time is it?”

“Nine-ish,” Scott glanced at his watch. “Parker’s serving breakfast.”

“Oh good! I’m famished.” Penny got to her feet gracefully and started toward Scott.

“Uhh, Penny? We’re forgetting someone.” Scott inclined his head towards Virgil.

“Oh, right. Hold on.” Penny turned and extended her arms in front of her. Scott wondered what on earth she was planning when Penny suddenly clapped her hands together loudly.

“Wake up princess! Time to eat!”

Virgil snorted and rolled over, Penny rolled her eyes again and leaned down.

Scott watched as she flicked Virgil’s forehead, the later waking with a shout and sitting upright in shock.

“Good morning Sleeping Beauty. Time for breakfast.” Penny didn’t even wait for Virgil to stand, turning and walking past Scott with a conspiratorial wink and smile.

Virgil got to his feet and ambled over to Scott with a yawn.

“She’s much better than an alarm clock,” he offered in way of an explanation to Scott, “I’m never late to any of my classes.”

A little later at the breakfast table, Scott continued to watch in amusement as Virgil stole food from Penny’s fork while failing to realise Penny was eating the food off of Virgil’s plate.

 

 

**Day Seven**

Penny found him in the large, formal living room.

Scott was staring out the large, leaded glass windows at the snow-laden slopes rising behind the house. In his head, a thunderous roar was replaying, a scream being muffled under massive drifts of snow. He could almost feel a cold, suffocating pressure against him and wondered what it would be like in those last moments. Would the cold prevent you from breathing first, or would it be the heavy, suffocating nature of the snow that killed you?

He almost screamed when he felt a gentle hand on his arm.

“Scott?” Penny was alarmed by his reaction. Scott was pale and whether he was aware of it or not, there were tears in his eyes.

Scott swallowed his embarrassment and tried to act like nothing was wrong.

“What are you doing here Penny? I thought you and Virgil were going skiing?”

“We were going too,” Penny watched Scott carefully as she continued, “but he decided he’d rather spend time with John instead. I don’t think he was too keen on going out on the slopes with just me and Parker.”

“Sorry about that. Dad said you’re really good at skiing.”Scott wanted to run, he wanted to find his brothers and hold them and let them know he was feeling the same unease being up in the mountains.

Penny turned to look out the window, her silence a little unsettling as Scott fidgeted.

“Did Virgil ever tell you about my accident a couple of years ago?” She asked.

Now it was Scott’s turn to stared at her.

“No. A skiing accident?”

“A horse riding accident. I was 14 and probably attempting more than I should have, but that’s the nature of my family.” Penny smiled slightly, still staring out at the fresh snow. “I was entered in a show jumping event and I was doing well. Until the last round. Somewhere in the middle of my run, my horse’s back hooves clipped the top of a jump and he spooked.”

Scott nodded, not sure where Penny was going with her story.

“As he landed, he threw me. But my foot got caught in the stirrup and as a result, my ankle broke.”

“Ouch.” Scott winced, “I’m sorry.”

“That wasn’t all. After my ankle broke, I finally came loose from the stirrup and flew backwards, landing right on the top pole of the jump. The back of my head hit the pole below and I blacked out. When I woke up, I was in hospital. I had a broken ankle, a green stick fracture in my thigh, a severely bruised spine, several cracked ribs, whiplash and a mild concussion.” Penny listed, eyes still trained on a spot in the distance. “I was lucky to not be paralyzed.”

“Oh god, Penny. I’m so sorry. That’s awful.” Scott said quietly. Why hadn’t Virgil said anything? A thought struck him. Maybe he had and Scott hadn’t thought it was worth his time hearing about some distant friend of the family.

“Don’t be. It’s in the past and I had the best medical care in the country. After a few weeks, I was back at home and well on my way to recovering.” Penny flashed Scott a sweet smile. “What took the longest to recover from was my new fear of riding. I couldn’t even go near the stables. It took weeks of persuading from my parents to even go and see my horse again.”

“What changed?”

“Parker found me staring at the stables one day. I was trying to summon the courage to go and pat Othello, my horse. But I was frozen. So Parker quietly reminded me that if I didn’t take charge of my fear, I’d spend the rest of my life staring at the stables and wondering about what could have been.”

Scott was genuinely impressed by the girl next to him. He could actually see her breeding coming through as she spoke, each word soft in tone but striking with carefully thought out precision.

“So he accompanied me into the stables and stayed close as I patted Othello for quite some time. And after several months of going to the stables with me as I recovered, Parker finally convinced me to attempt riding again. Nothing fancy, just a simple walk around the training ring. He even held the guide rope for me. I was terrified! But Parker just kept telling me I had to get back on the horse again, otherwise I’d never be free of my fear. Just over a month later, I was back to practising jumping. On much smaller jumps of course. But I was enjoying it and riding daily again. Like I’d never experienced my accident.” Penny smiled out the window again. “I even went on to win the same show jumping competition the next year. Without a single incident.”

Scott was still at a loss as to why Penny had told him this, but tried to respond.

“Wow. So you really beat your fear huh? Pretty impressive.”

Penny turned to him with a roll of her eyes.

“Yes but I was trying to explain what you need to do next.” She chuckled lightly at the expression on his face. “Alright, I could’ve been more obvious, but I was trying to say that the snow is your horse. You’ve got to go back out there and show you’re not scared of the snow.”

“I’m not scared! Who said that?” Scott could feel his cheeks flushing, “Was it Virg?! He’s so dead!”

He went to leave, fully intending to beat his brother with a pillow when he found him, only to be stopped by a small hand resting against his chest.

“No. I’m not stupid Scott. Virgil told me how he felt about coming here, and I remembered how your mother died. And I’m glad Jeff brought you all here despite that. But you’ve hardly ventured outside. Virg said you used to love skiing and snowboarding but you haven’t even joined us in a snowball fight yet.”

Scott hesitated, cursing himself for being so obvious.

“I- I just keep imagining what it must have been like...” He admitted, horrified to feel tears escape him.

Penny chewed her lip slightly.

“Stay here.” She ordered, tone of voice so commanding Scott doubted even his dad would’ve disobeyed.

Penny went to the window and pushed it open slightly, scooping up a handful of snow from the window ledge.

“Here. Take a good look at it.” She instructed, holding the snow out on her palm for Scott to see. “What is it?”

“Penny, it’s snow.” Scott frowned. Penny sighed in frustration.

“No. It’s only frozen water. See? It’s already melting.”

The snow in Penny’s palm was already beginning to drip from her hand, dark spots forming on the carpet.

“Parker’s gonna be mad.” Scott pointed out.

“I swear to god Tracy, I’m going to shove this down your shirt in a minute.” Penny scowled before trying to get Scott to understand. “Look, snow always melts. Any touch of heat and,”

With a gentle hand, Penny grabbed Scott’s wrist and laid it over the pile of half-melted slush on her hand. “it begins to disappear. You have to go outside and show that the snow’s not going to stop you anymore. I know a horse riding accident isn’t exactly the same as the death of a parent, but the recovery process is the same. You’re scared of the same happening again, you can’t stop imagining it happening again and you wish you could go back and stop it. But we can’t. We have to accept that fear and be brave. Brave enough to face it and,” Penny released Scott’s hand, revealing a puddle of fresh melt water in her hand. “let it melt. So that we can simply let it wash away and leave us better than it found us.”

Scott wasn’t sure if he wanted to laugh or cry.

Eventually he settled on a mixture of both, tugging Penny into a tight hug as tears rolled down past the grin on his face.

“Thank you.” He whispered as the young girl hugged him back.

“Anytime Scott.”

Releasing Penny with a slightly manic sounding laugh, Scott wiped his face furiously before giving her a crooked grin.

“You couldn’t have just said that I had to get back up on the horse?” He joked, feeling better than he had since arriving. Penny pulled a face.

“Please. Such a crude way of describing the healing process.” She bantered, glancing back out the window. “Oh look! Virgil and John are out enjoying the snow!”

Scott turned and was pleased to see his two younger brothers galloping around in the snow, tossing handfuls of it at each other and whooping with laughter.

“Come on! We can’t let them have all the fun!” Penny grabbed Scott’s hand and pulled him from the lounge.

An electric pulse spread up Scott’s arm at the contact, the feeling over-riding the persistent discomfort over the idea of being out in the snow.

Deciding to trust Penny, Scott gave in with a laugh and shout of encouragement as they headed out into the bright white landscape.

 

“Where is he?!” Jeff’s voice was loud and harsh as he burst back into the house, Hugh and Amelia  Creighton-Ward close behind him.

“Dad?” John looked up from his book. “Who are you-”

“Scott! Parker said he’d been hurt!” Jeff tried not to imagine the worst, but after losing his Lucille in the snow only a year ago, just the thought of his eldest being injured out here was enough to cause the father of 5 to have severe heart palpitations.

“He’s in his room. But he’s fin-”

John’s words were lost as Jeff hurried down the hallway and all but crashed through the doorway to Scott and Virgil’s shared room.

Only to find an embarrassed looking Scott being fussed over by a soaked Penny as an equally soaked Virgil was laughing at the end of the bed.

“Dad!” Scott exclaimed when he caught sight of him, Penny jumping a little guiltily.

“I’m sorry Jeff, it was all my fault-”

“What happened?” Jeff demanded, fears only assuaged slightly by the fact that Scott looked perfectly fine except for the definitely embarrassed look on his face.

Virgil, who had turned to face his father with an easy grin, sniggered and Scott thumped him with a pillow before beginning to explain.

“We were out in the snow, and our snowball fight sort of escalated-”

“You could say that.” Virgil smirked, earning another smack of the pillow.

“It really was my fault Jeff.” Penny took up the end of the story. “As usual, Virgil and I got carried away and we ended up in an all out battle. John did the sensible thing and went back to the cabin, but the rest of us were still chasing each other around and well,”

“Scott got taken out by a tree.” Virgil burst into a laughing fit again, even Penny and Scott fighting to keep straight faces as they remembered the stupidity of the moment when Scott seemed to have been snuck up on by a tree, getting caught in the back of the head by a protruding branch which also dumped a ton of snow on him as he hit the ground.

Jeff’s heart eased at the sight of the three giggling teenagers, relieved to know it was nothing serious. But he still had a responsibility as a parent.

“And you’re fine? No dizzy spells, no unconsciousness, no vomiting?”

“No sir.” Scott smiled reassuringly. “A bruised ego maybe, and definitely a lump on my skull, but no concussion.”

“What was your first award for?” Jeff prompted, testing his son regardless.

“For a model plane I built when I was six-years old.” Scott replied, a quick sideways glance at a smiling Penny. He wasn’t totally sure why he did, he just didn’t want her to think he was some sort of model club nerd.

“Well, you certainly seem to be in capable hands,” Jeff smiled at Penny, “but once you feel up to it, get changed. All of you. You’ll catch a cold in those wet clothes.”

“Yes sir.” All three teenagers answered promptly and Jeff nodded, leaving the room at a more sedate pace.

“So, award winning model planes?” Penny asked, Scott facing her with an embarrassed grin.

“Yeah. I guess I’ve always loved planes and flying. I’m thinking of going into the air force next year.”

“Yeah, he’ll be a real hotshot.” Virgil grinned, catching the pillow Scott threw at him.

A light peal of laughter from Penny had both boys turning to her in confusion.

“I suppose you’ll need a fair bit of training if the way you crash landed today was any indication of your flying ability.” She teased shamelessly. Scott could feel his smile threatening to split his face as Virgil guffawed loudly.

 

 

**Night 7**

“It’s so beautiful tonight.” Virgil shifted closer to Penny on the roof, tightening his grip on blanket. “But damn it’s cold up here!”

Penny didn’t reply, just stayed staring up at the starry sky above them. Virgil nudged her, worried she might have frozen.

“Penny?”

“Hmm?”

“You’re miles away huh? Why’d you drag me out here if you’re just gonna drift off like that?” Virgil teased good-naturedly.

“Sorry Virg, I was just...” Penny shook her head, “it’s nothing. Sorry.”

Virgil knew better than that.

“Oh no LP, come on. Spill it.” Virgil poked her in the thigh under their shared blanket. “I have four brothers, I know how to be annoying until you give in.”

Penny sighed heavily, her breath hanging in the air for a moment.

“I think I ha” the rest of her words dissolved into a quiet mumble as she ducked her head.

“What?” Virgil raised an eyebrow at his best friend. Penny normally didn’t keep anything from him. What was so different this time?

“I said, I think I have a cr” once again, Penny mumbled the last of her sentence out in a rush. Virgil risked the frostbite to lift a hand and tug on a strand of Penny’s hair the way he’d done for years.

“Come on LP, you can tell me. Have I ever let you down?”

“No...” Came the sulky reply before Penny lifted her head and gazed out over the silvery snow fields. “I think I have a crush on Scott.” Her cheeks flamed and Penny fought the urge to bury her head under the blanket. It wasn’t her fault Virgil’s brother was so charming, and sweet, and handsome... like earlier today when they’d all been out in the snow, before Scott was attacked by the tree, there had been a moment. A moment when a breathless and red cheeked Scott had jumped out at her with a grin and she had just frozen. Completely stopped dead. Absolutely lost in the deep blue of his eyes as they shone in the sunlight, the grin, those two damn dimples... until Virgil’s well timed snowball had smacked her in the face. And even then, Scott had come to her rescue! Helping her back up with gentle hands and whispering in her ear about the best way to get revenge... Absolutely not her fault she had a crush when the boy was so damn likeable!

Virgil almost laughed. Scott had told him the night before that he like Penny.

“Well, who wouldn’t?” Virgil eventually said, desperately holding his laugh in. “He’s a great guy.”

Penny glanced across at him, the heavily embarrassed look on her face finally pushing Virgil over the edge. His loud bark of laughter echoed slightly over the roof of the house.

“Oh shut up!” Penny fumed, “I’ll push you off the roof!”

Virgil bit his lip, still chuckling.

“Ok, ok your highness.” Virgil managed to stop laughing, feeling Penny hunch her shoulders away from him. “Look, what’s the big deal here LP? So you have a crush on my brother, it’s not like I’m that surprised.”

Penny lifted her head, looking back at Virgil suspiciously. Virgil took it as a sign to keep going.

“I mean, am I disappointed you’ve decided to ignore the most handsome brother, the one who is most loyal to you and is definitely a better choice than Scott? Yes. I thought you had better taste.” Vigil mockingly fell against Penny, miming heartbreak. “But I suppose I will have to pick up the pieces of my broken heart and move on. Maybe with Shelley Van der Byek.”

Penny rolled her eyes, unable to stop herself from grinning at Virgil’s antics.

“Don’t you dare. You know she only goes out with guys because of their fortunes.” She warned.

“Hey, if it gets me laid.” Virgil shrugged, teeth gleaming in the light.

“You’re a pig.” Penny teased, shoving Virgil lightly as he snorted exaggeratedly in response.

Virgil smiled as he wrangled an arm around his friend’s shoulders and hugged her.

“Your secret’s safe with me Penny.”

“Really?”

“Well, only until we go back to school and I’m FORCED to pass it on to all our friend’s at the gossip table.”

 

Scott woke with a start as Virgil landed in the snow drift outside their room with a brief yelp.

 

 

**Day 10**

Still feeling unsure about what she had in store, Scott and his brothers showed up where Penny had told them too.

“Well? You see her?” Virgil asked.

“There!” John pointed excitedly. “There’s an ice rink!”

John ran, struggling in the snow slightly as he rushed to get to the ice first. Virgil charged after him.

Scott hesitated, worrying his lip.

Was it a frozen lake? If it was, there was no way he was setting foot on it! Come to think of it, even if it wasn’t, there was still no no way he was setting foot on it. He’d never been ice skating before. At least not intentionally. And slipping on frozen puddles definitely didn’t count.

“Come on Scott!” Virgil hollered from where he was already pulling the bladed skates on. John was ready to go as well, being helped onto the ice by a smiling and flushed Penny.

“No, I’m good. I can do it.” John protested, taking his first glide... and promptly falling over. Penny giggled and reached down to help him back up.

“Round two?” She suggested. John was a little red, but set his jaw firmly and started again, little glides that slowly gained confidence.

Scott finally reached them as Virgil headed to the ice.

It did turn out to be just a flat disc of moulded ice, not a frozen lake, which Scott was relieved about. He didn’t want to have to worry about anyone going through thin ice.

Penny was leaning on the barrier, bundled up in a thick coat and woolen accessories.

“You coming?” She asked, indicating toward the pair of skates left by the nearby bench.

Scott swallowed.

“I-I,”

“Oh, Scott doesn’t skate.” Virgil appeared after his first lap around the ice. “He has all the grace of overcooked spaghetti on the ice.”

Scott felt his cheeks flare.

“Not everyone gets to skate regularly in the winter, unlike some.” He protested thickly.

Penny made her way around the barrier, her walking slightly stilted by the rocking motion of her ice skates.

“I can teach you?” She offered. Scott shook his head stubbornly.

“Look out!” John careened into Virgil and sent both of them sprawling.

“Oh dear.” Penny glanced back. “Everyone all right?”

“I think I’m getting the hang of it!” John said proudly, still squashed under his brother.

“A few more laps and you’ll be a natural.” Penny turned and hauled Virgil up, only just moving from the momentum.

“Yeah. Come on hotshot. Let’s teach you how to stop without taking out any more people.” Virgil rubbed the back of his head with a wince.

“You ok Virg?” Scott asked.

“Yup. I’ve got a thick skull. Come on Johnny.” Grabbing his younger brother’s arm, Virgil gently started skating again, instructing John as they went.

Penny turned back to Scott.

“You sure? She asked, unraveling her scarf. Scott nodded, sitting on the bench.

“Well, the skates are paid for and you know where we are if you change your mind. Here. Hold this for me.” Penny draped her scarf over Scott’s shoulder and pushed away, picking up speed easily to catch up with Virgil and John.

Scott idly wound the pink scarf through his hands as he watched them all.

Penny seemed to alternate between weaving lazy circles around the boys, demonstrating to John, or spinning off on her own as she performed leaps, twirls and even showing Virgil up as she skated past him backwards. Scott was not surprised to see how easily she moved on the ice. Penny made it look easy.

John eventually made his way over, face red from exertion and a giant smile on his face.

“Scott! Scotty! You gotta try this! It’s so much fun! And Penny’s really good. She could teach you easily.”

Scott wasn’t too sure.

As he’d been sitting there, a few more people had shown up, all donning skates and taking to the ice.

Falling on his ass now would have him looking foolish in front of everyone.

“I don’t know Johnny,” He started reluctantly, but John put on his best puppy eyes.

“COOMMEE ONNN!” He pleaded loudly. Scott sighed, reaching down for the skates.

“Fine. But if I get a bruised butt, it’s your fault.”  
“You won’t. Penny can teach you. Look at her and Virg.”

Scott glanced up briefly to see his brother and Penny whiz by. They had quite a turn of speed, dodging and weaving other skaters easily before spinning into the middle with joint hands, laughing loudly all the while.

Scott laced the skates with a looming sense of dread. Virgil had been right. Scott had no grace on the ice. It was like his legs weren’t under his control at all once he was off the snow.

With a slick scrape along the ice, Virgil reappeared.

“You finally giving in?” He teased, hat hanging from one hand and dark hair completely windswept. Scott pulled a face at him as he wobbled over to the barrier, remembering to tuck Penny's scarf in his pocket.

“Ah. There you are boys.”

Jeff leaned next to Scott, ruffling John’s hair as the teenager clomped back towards the rink. “Parker said that Penny had organised this for you.”

“You joining us dad?” Virgil asked as he steadied John.

“You know, why not? I’ll go see about a set of skates myself. It’s been a while.” Jeff grinned, and walked toward the rental window.

“Oh great, now dad can see me fail.” Scott muttered, still clinging to the barrier for dear life.

“Scott! You’re going to give it a go!” Penny skated up, neatly avoiding John’s flailing arm. “Need a hand?”

“Nope.” Scott gritted his teeth, “I’ve got it.”

Despite Virgil’s snort, Scott placed one foot on the ice and jolted as his foot threatened to slip out from under him.

Penny winced. She really wanted to help him, but she recognised his stubbornness. Virgil had been the same the first time she coaxed him out onto the lake back home.

Jeff rejoined them, skates slung over one shoulder.

“Hello Penny.” He waved.

“Hello Jeff! You joined us.” Penny smiled widely, Virgil surreptitiously helping Scott onto the ice and getting him to hang onto the barrier.

“Yes. A brilliant idea by the way.” Jeff wasted no time in lacing his skates and getting onto the ice.

Scott was a little pleased to see his own father wobble for the first few glides he took.

“Guess it has been a while.” Jeff muttered to himself as John clumsily skated up to his father.

“Watch this! Penny and Virgil were teaching me.” John started to skate, much smoother than he had earlier. Jeff chuckled and took his son’s challenge, soon finding his stride and catching up to John easily.

“Well, might as well challenge him to see who’s faster.” Virgil grinned, abandoning Scott as he fought to stay upright.

Penny skated closer, leaning against the barrier with a small smile.

“You’re going to leave claw marks in the wood.” She said softly. “Come on, we’ll start slow.”

“Nuh uh. I don’t think I can move.” Scott was only half-lying.

“Oh don’t be a big baby Scott.” Penny took a hold of his arm, feeling Scott tense as she went to pull him, “What’s the big deal?”

“Can’t skate. Gonna make an idiot of myself.” Came the mumbled reply.

“So? Your father just fell over. He’s not embarrassed.”

Scott peered over his shoulder, spotting Jeff climbing to his feet with a bark of laughter as Virgil circled him and John widely. Scott took a deep breath and straightened up, only to feel his feet slide in opposite directions.

“Argh!”

Gravity finally got him, Scott hitting the ice hard. Penny flailed from his sudden fall, but managed to stay up by locking her legs and toes.

Ok. We’ll start REALLY slow.” She smiled, clearly trying not to laugh.

Scott scowled.

“That’s it. I’m done. I got on the ice, now I’m going back to the cabin and getting warm.” He grumbled, struggling to his feet, only getting halfway before his feet slipped again. Penny actually did laugh this time, leaning over with an arm extended.

“No! You can’t give up! Come here. Point your toes.” She instructed, holding onto the barrier as Scott gripped her arm tightly. “Ok. Brace on knee on the ice and grab the barrier as you push up. Fast too.”

Scott managed to hauled himself up, grateful for Penny helping him.

“Ok. Now, let go of the barrier.” She continued, tightening her grip on his arm. Scott felt his heart speed up, this wasn’t going to end well. He was going to drag Penny over with him, he just knew it.

Slowly, Scott released his hold on the wood. Penny gently moved him away, keeping her balance perfectly.

Waving one arm wildly to keep his balance, Scott waited to fall again.

“See?” Penny beamed, still holding him. “You’re fine. Now you just have to start moving.”

“Er, how? I’ve never done this before.”

“Right. Watch my feet. You want to slide your feet forward, picking them up just as they pass each other.” Penny demonstrated as best she could while staying in the same place. Scott gave her a bemused look.

“Nope. Not getting it.”

“Ever been roller skating?”

“A couple of times... why?”

“Same motion. But this time you’re on ice, not wheels.” Penny offered. “Ready to try?”

“Ok.” Scott took a deep breath, flinching as someone skated by a little too close.

“Hold on. Let’s swap sides. Hold the barrier again.” Penny quickly pushed him closer to the wood and waited next to him. Scott realised she was effectively acting as a barrier between him and the other, faster skaters.

“Ready? You want to hold on to me?” She asked, already offering her arm. Scott shook his head as a tiny child of indeterminate gender skated past, wrapped heavily in layers of winter clothes. If kids could do this, so could he!

Penny patted his arm.

“You’ll be fine. Go on.” She encouraged.

Scott pushed himself away from the barrier shakily, feet still threatening to slip, but he thankfully stayed up. Moving his feet slowly, he managed a few glides before grasping for the barrier again.

“You did it!” Penny cheered, resting next to him. “You skated!”

"For like, three steps.” But Scott could feel the grin on his face at Penny’s excitement. John was right, Penny made an excellent teacher.

“Looked more like one prolonged fall.” Virgil teased, skating up gracefully.

“Don’t be mean. He’s doing well. He’s fallen less than you did.” Penny retorted.

“Give it time.” Virgil shrugged and skated off just as easily as he had arrived.

“Don’t listen to him. Come on. Let’s keep going.” Penny urged. Scott nodded, pushing away again.

This time was easier. He still felt like he could fall at any moment, but he might actually be getting the hang of moving his feet.

“Ok. Now we need to learn to stop.” Penny was suddenly in front of him, effortlessly skating backwards with occasional glances over her shoulder. “Twist your feet toward the barrier slightly, at the same time.”

Scott tried and succeeded in crashing into the barrier with a thump.

“Ooh. Ouch. Sorry, are you ok?” Penny asked, resting a small hand on his back.

Scott nodded, winded.

“Sure. Didn’t need to, breathe anyway.” He gasped out.

“I’m sorry. How about you just try to aim for any barrier when you want to stop? At least you might not hit it so hard next time.” Penny offered.

“Why is this so difficult?” Scott groaned, lifting his head.

“You just need to keep moving until you’ve got the hang of it. Practise makes perfect.” Penny encouraged, taking hold of his hand easily. “Don’t worry, I’ve got you. We’ll do one lap around the rink.”

Scott stared wide-eyed at her.

“A whole lap? Penny, I’ve hardly moved!”

“So? Are you really going to let Virgil have the satisfaction of seeing you fail? Or are you going to prove that you can do this?” Penny appealed straight to the competitive streak that lay in all the Tracy boys. Scott glanced over at where Virgil was teaching John a few tricks as their father skated almost effortlessly alongside.

Penny won. There was no way he was going to be the only one unable to skate.

“Alright. Let’s do it.” He agreed, clutching Penny’s hand tightly as he let go of the barrier.

“Ok. Just try to follow my lead alright? I’ll go slowly.” Penny assured, pulling Scott after her gently. “Just keep your balance.”

Easier said than done Scott thought as they began to make progress around the rink.

But somehow, it was working. Letting Penny set the pace, Scott tentatively began to move his own feet. He wasn’t wobbling as much, and he even managed to turn without tripping and landing on his ass!

“Guess what?” Penny grinned, still close by. “I’ve let go of your hand.”

Scott suddenly realised she was right, Penny proving it by skating out in front of him and spinning.

“Look at you!” She cheered, “You’re ice skating!”

“Whoo! Go Scotty!” Virgil was suddenly behind him. “Isn’t that hard is it?”

Scott grinned... and felt his balance shift.

“Wo- woah!” He waved his arms wildly and suddenly both Penny and Virgil were holding his arms.

“Can’t let you fall now.” Virgil huffed. “You’re close to doing an entire lap.”

“Aim for the barrier and point your toes together, it’ll slow you down.” Penny instructed.

Scott did as he was told and found himself slowing until he reached the barrier.

“Not bad son.”

Scott looked up as his father joined them, John clinging to his arm.

“You did great Scott!” John enthused.

“That was really good Scott!” Penny came to a standstill behind him.

“Thanks Penny.”

“Now you’ve just got to do it by yourself.”

“WHAT?”

“It’s easy. You just did it.” Penny pointed out. “I’ll be right behind you.”

Scott hesitated, Jeff reaching over to slap his son’s arm gently.

“Go on Scott. Show what you’re made of.”

Scott took a deep breath and pushed away, struggling to find his pace to begin with.

“Go Scott!” John cheered happily.

Scott found his balance and began to glide easier. He grinned widely. This was actually fun!

Penny weaved out in front of him, smiling as she resumed skating backwards.

Scott laughed, reaching his hand out again. Penny took it and twisted to glide next to him.

“Not bad.” She praised.

Except she spoke too soon.

The same heavily bundled child from earlier suddenly appeared and both Scott and Penny had to veer sharply to avoid them.

They hit the snow on the side of the ring, the snow causing their feet to stop while the rest of them kept going.

Landing face down in a snow drift, Scott groaned.

“Well, that was discouraging.” Penny muttered, sitting up and dusting the snow from her arms.

“You think?” Scott propped himself up on his arms.

“It could have been worse.”

“Penny, A FIVE-YEAR OLD CHILD CAN SKATE BETTER THAN ME!” Scott  fumed.

Penny laughed as she eyed the snow now liberally covering Scott’s hair and face. He looked so angry and cute all at the same time, like an annoyed puppy.

She dissolved into giggles, unable to explain why, her heart fluttering madly as Scott stared at her.

“Oh my god, are you guys ok?” Virgil had rushed over, worried when Penny and Scott had suddenly vanished.

“Just fine Virg.” Scott rolled over, bumping into a still giggling Penny.

Virgil gave them an odd look as Scott finally burst out laughing at the ridiculousness of what had happened.

Scooping a handful of snow up, Scott flung it at Penny.

She spluttered and flung herself over him in a dramatic death as Scott laughed even harder.

“Come on,” He shoved her shoulder playfully. “Let’s get back up. I want to try skating again.”

 

 

**Night 13**

Scott claimed the large, plush chair near the fire with a grin.

This had become his favourite part of the day.

Almost every night, after everyone had fallen asleep, Scott and Penny crept back out into the informal lounge to read by the fire together. Well, mostly reading.

Sometimes Penny worked on school work that Virgil had told Scott was Honours level, or cross stitched (learnt from her Great-Aunt Sylvia she had informed him) as he watched... and then sometimes they just talked quietly for a while before creeping back to their rooms and getting a few hours sleep.

Scott almost swallowed his tongue when a pair of slender hands covered his eyes from behind.

“You thought you were so clever getting the comfy chair hm?” Penny’s voice was a whisper from behind, the noise giving Scott goosebumps.

“Good thing I don’t mind sitting on the floor.” Penny uncovered his eyes and walked round before dropping gracefully at his feet to lean back against the chair, sighing as the warmth of the fire hit her fully.

“You could’ve asked you know.” Scott finally whispered.

“The gentlemanly think to do would have been to offer the lady a chair.” Penny retorted. Scott rolled his eyes and slid down to sit on the fluffy carpet, right next to Penny.

“There. Now no one gets the chair.” He stuck his tongue out childishly, butterflies erupting madly as Penny returned the gesture.

They both faced the fire, neither one moving to put on the nearby floor lamp and neither of them revealing a book.

“It’s been 12 days... you’ll all be leaving soon.” Penny eventually said.

“It’s gone pretty fast.” Scott agreed, surprised to find himself disappointed.

“I suppose you’re probably missing Gordon and Alan.”

“Well, yeah. But they’re still young and easily distracted. They won’t have even missed us after a few days.” Scott smiled at the fire. He really was missing the antics of his two youngest brothers. “I wonder how many dishes of Grandma’s Gordon has managed to break by now?”

“Virg did say he can be a little troublesome.”

“Only a little? That’s an understatement. That kid likes to run around screaming when he’s bored, or he hides and jumps out at you as you walk past. I almost think Dad was glad to get away for a while.”

“Must be hard for him though. Two young kids, three teenagers and a business to run? Can’t be easy.”

Scott shrugged, his shoulder rubbing against Penny’s.

“He does his best for all of us. And having your father offer to cover Virg’s schooling helped.”

“I’m glad that Virgil stayed at school with me, even after your dad got back on his feet.”

“Yeah. I gathered you two are kinda close.”

Penny blushed in the firelight, Scott suddenly hyper aware of how close they actually were. Shoulder to shoulder, hip to hip... This may be the closest they’d ever sat.

“I suppose me and Virgil are close... we spend a lot of time together,” Penny nibbled her lip, “but best friends are supposed to be close aren’t they? I mean, it’s not like we’re dating at all, though I believe most of the other kids at school think we are.”

“I wondered if you two were trying to keep it secret,” Scott admitted, heart suddenly beating too fast for his liking, “when I first saw how close you guys would get to each other.”

“But we’re sitting that close now, and we’re not dating. I don’t think closeness is an indication of a relationship.” Penny’s cheeks flamed further as her words stumbled slightly at the implication of her words. Why had she said that?!

Scott himself was feeling slightly lightheaded. She’d mentioned how close they were sitting... should he move away? She hadn’t... was that a good thing? Or was she waiting for him to do something first? Think Scott, think!

“Uh, good point.”

Scott mentally slapped himself. His reply had been so wooden and clumsy, Penny was going to think he was an idiot.

“Virgil and I have never been interested in dating each other.”

Penny’s words had Scott snapping to attention again.

“What? Never? Why?”

“I don’t really know. We’ve just never been romantically attracted to each other.” Penny shrugged, stretching her legs out in front of her. “We talked about it once. After our friends tried to force us to admit we liked each other.”

“What happened?”

“Virgil threatened to put Leo into a headlock until he turned purple and I simply informed Izzy and Tal that I knew exactly where they were sneaking off too every day at lunch, and with who. They never tried it again.”

“Brutal.” Scott was impressed. Penny was certainly nothing like the prissy girl he’d imagined. “But, I still find it hard to believe you and Virg never had a crush on one another at some point. Not even for a day?”

“Nope. She broke my heart on day one Scoot.”

Both Penny and Scott jumped, hearts racing and screams dying in their mouths when they realised that Virgil had snuck up on them.

“You were asleep!” Scott hissed accusingly, hoping to anyone up there who was listening, that Penny hadn’t heard his childhood nickname.

“Wait, Scoot?” Penny asked, regaining her composure quicker than Scott.

“Yup. Apparently I couldn’t quite manage to say Scott when I was a baby. So it became Scoot instead.” Virgil flopped into the chair, immediately draping an arm over Penny.

Scott was pretty sure his cheeks were on fire.

“That’s adorable.” Penny smiled at him, not an ounce of mocking in her voice. “Really. Are there any other cute nicknames in the family?”

“Well, we call Gordon Fish,” Virgil smiled, “he discovered water a few years ago and now we can’t get him out of it. Alan normally gets called Squirt since he’s still tiny.”

Penny reached up and punched Virgil lightly.

“Not everyone can be a brick wall like you.”

“How’d you guess my nickname?”

“What? Pain in the ass?”

Scott almost burst out laughing at Penny’s retort, her mild swearing making the whole thing more thrilling. He hadn’t heard her do anything more than mildly cuss when annoyed.

“Ouch LP. Cruel blow.”

“You deserved it.”

“LP?” Scott interrupted. “I mean, if we’re talking nicknames, care to explain that one.”

“It’s pretty simple Scoot,” Virgil grinned at his brother, “Lady Penelope was far too much of a mouthful to keep saying, so I shortened it. L-P, get it?”

“It was that simple? I thought you two had some sort of code or something...” Scott shook his head with an exasperated smile.

“No but that’s not a bad idea. What do you say LP? Fancy speaking in pig Latin?”

“Onay.”

“Amnday.”

“You two are impossible to keep up with,” Scott rolled his eyes fondly.

“And you two are acting rather sneaky, sitting out here while thinking everyone’s asleep. What’s the deal?” Virgil asked, enjoying the embarrassed glance Penny and Scott exchanged.

“Couldn’t sleep.”

“Wasn’t tired.”

“And you just both happened to wander out here at the same time on the same night? Mighty strange.” Virgil grinned as a particularly evil idea struck him. “Good thing I wasn’t able to sleep either after Scott snuck out. Now we can do something fun.”

“Like what?” Penny was immediately defensive. She knew Virgil’s tricks.

“Hmm? How about a game of ‘I Have Never’?”

Penny blanched a little at the idea. She hated this game. It quickly became apparent that she’d led a very sheltered life, not to mention a lot of people simply used it to just embarrass each other.

Scott wasn’t too happy about it either.

“Virg, that’s childish. Penny and I were happy just talking.”

“But it’s fun. Come on you two. Please?”

Scott sighed.

“Only if Penny agrees.”

“I’ll let you go first LP.” Virgil bargained, tugging her hair fondly. Penny rolled her eyes and nodded.

“Fine. I have never... fallen asleep in French class and woke up shouting about spiders.” She grinned wickedly as Virgil groaned behind her and Scott snickered.

“Really Virg?”

“I was 11 and I don’t like spiders!” Virgil protested, “That was low Penny.”

“That’s what you get for scaring me.”

“Fine. 2 points to you. Your turn Scott.”

“I have never... hmm, cried because I couldn’t fit in the laundry hamper.”

Penny giggled as Virgil cuffed the back of his brother’s head.

“Alright funny guy, if that’s how you want to play this game... I have never wet myself in fear because I thought there was a shark in the pool.”

Penny squeaked, falling over on the floor clutching her sides, trying her hardest not to laugh loudly as Scott attempted to strangle Virgil quietly.

“What are you guys doing?”

They all froze and found John staring sleepily at them, rubbing his eyes as his blonde hair stuck up at crazy angles.

“We were playing a game.” Penny smiled and beckoned for John to sit next to her. The 14-year old in his space pyjamas ambled over and collapsed next to Penny, even allowing her to attempt to flatten his hair without much complaint.

“What kind of game?” He asked. Scott glanced at Virgil, who shrugged.

“It’s called I Have Never,” Penny made the decision for all of them, “what you have to do is say something that you’ve never done, and then everyone else puts their hand up if they’ve never done it either.”

“Oh. Why was Scott attacking Virgil?”

“Virgil cheated.” Penny smiled as John yawned, resting his head against her.

“What are you doing awake Johnny?” Scott asked, watching his younger brother in concern.

“Needed a glass of water.” John mumbled.

“I got it.” Virgil swung himself off the chair and headed to the kitchen.

“Can I play your game too?” John asked, looking up at Penny.

“Sure.” Penny smiled. She was quite taken with the quiet young boy. John spent most of his time reading, quietly watching his brother’s, and while he did join in the rambunctious fun in the snow, he was always the first to retreat to the safety of the veranda and watch them with a giant smile on his face. Penny had even been giving him suggestions for books to read.

“Ok! Who’s turn is it?” John’s face lit up as Virgil came back with a glass of water.

“I think it was Penny’s.” Scott sat back down, a quick glare at Virgil to warn him not to cause any more trouble.

“Ok. Well, I have never,” Penny thought and decided to give John an easy example, “gone into space.”

All three boys put their hands in the air.

“That was too easy Penny.” Virgil complained.

“Shush. It’s John’s turn.”

“Umm... I have never...” John’s forehead crinkled as he tried to think, “Been on a date with a girl.”

Penny put her hand in the air, kicking Virgil’s foot when he didn’t raise his hand.

“Lying is not allowed. You have to be honest.”

“What? I’ve been on a date.” Virgil bluffed.

“No you haven’t. I would know if you had.” Penny gave him a knowing look and Virgil finally admitted defeat, raising his hand slowly.

“2 points to you Johnny.” Scott could feel Virgil’s eyes burning holes into him and shifted slightly. “And before anyone can ask, no. I’m not telling you who it was.”

“Spoilsport.”

“Come on Virg,” John prompted, “it’s your turn.”

“Alright, alright. Let me see...”

The next few rounds went well, from innocent questions to embarrassing anecdotes, everyone was enjoying themselves and John was starting to fall asleep again.

“We should probably wrap this up guys.” Scott whispered as John’s head dropped for the third time. “John needs to get back to bed.”

“Wha- no. Jus’ one more.” John mumbled sleepily.

“Alright. One more question and then bed ok?” Penny patted the young boy’s knee softly.

“Mm’k. I have never been kissed.” John said quietly.

Penny froze. It wasn’t John’s fault, he couldn’t know... but still...

Refusing to put her hand up, Penny waited until John looked around.

“Aw, just me? Really?”

“Come on, bedtime mister.” Penny got to her feet and helped John up before either of his brother’s could offer.

“Ok Penny.” John allowed himself to be pulled away from the fire and back down toward the bedrooms.

Virgil and Scott stayed by the fire.

“She lied.” Virgil mused quietly, “Could probably use that as blackmail later.”

“What?”

“Penny. She lied.”

“Why would she- which question?” Scott felt bad about asking. If Penny wanted to keep something a secret, he couldn’t blame her. But he was only human after all.

“Hm? Oh, no. Couldn’t tell you. She’d never forgive me.”

“Then why’d you mention it?”

“To see if you were as smart as you think you are. Come on Scott. Think about it. What would Penny, a gorgeous 16-year old, be embarrassed to admit?”

Scott tried to think, his first guess interrupted by Penny returning.

“He went out like a light. Poor thing. We shouldn’t have let him stay up with us.”

“We should all probably head to bed. We’ve been up long enough.” Virgil suggested, sauntering over to the kitchen and turning the light off. “By the way LP, you lose the game for lying.”

“What? I didn’t lie!” Penny protested, folding her arms crossly.

“You didn’t admit the truth though.”

“That’s not lying.”

“Just as bad. Poor John. You let him down by one point.” Virgil teased, slinging an arm around Penny’s hunched shoulders and planting a kiss on her head. “Night. Coming Scott?”

“Huh? Oh yeah. In a minute.” Scott had figured it out. No wonder Penny had wanted to keep it quiet.

“Ok. Try not to wake me as you come back to the room.” Virgil ambled away with a grin. With him around, those two would find it hard not to give in and admit they liked each other. He’d make sure of it.

Scott hovered uncertainly as Penny turned.

“You should go to bed Scott. Virg is right. It’s late. We need to sleep.”

“You, uh, you ok?”

“Fine. Virgil doesn’t always know what he’s talking about.”

“Yeah...” It was a lie and they both knew it. Virgil was a people person. He found out everything and was hardly ever wrong.

Penny sighed and walked passed Scott, patting him on the arm.

“Goodnight Scott.”

“Penny, wait.” Scott hesitated for only a moment before placing a soft kiss against Penny’s cheek. “It might not be a proper first kiss, but we should probably get to know each other before that.”

Penny stared in shock, completely thrown and no idea how to respond.

Scott smiled softly and squeezed her upper arm.

“Night Penny.”

Penny stayed where she was until Scott had vanished, a soft click telling her he’d returned to his room and closed the door.

Lifting a finger to her cheek, she tried to make sense of what had happened.

Had Scott just promised to be her first kiss?

Wait.

How did HE know she hadn’t been kissed before?

OH.

Virgil was as good as dead tomorrow.

 

 

**Night 14**

It was the last night of their holiday and everyone was sitting in the dining hall up at the resort.

Sitting between her mother and Virgil, Penny was immediately opposite Scott and was fighting not to blush every time she caught his eye.

Scott was feeling much the same.

Given the posh nature of the resort, evening dress was required and he was feeling rather stiff in the suit he was wearing. Despite having gone to at least two important dinners like this with his father before, tonight felt worse as many different people kept coming over to talk to Penny’s parents. Scott was starting to feel like he was on display. It was making him fidgety.

And Penny across from him, well. She looked beautiful. Despite the fact that she hadn’t looked him in the eye properly since Virgil’s stupid game of “I Have Never” last night, Scott was finding it hard not to stare at her.

Scott swallowed a tired sigh, only consoled by the fact that the dinner was finally over.

“So, Scott. Jeff tells me you’re planning to join the air force?” Hugh Creighton-Ward leaned forward, all smiles.

“Ah, yes sir. That’s correct.” Scott answered, still not sure how best to address the Lord.

“Just like your old man then ay?” Hugh clapped Jeff on the arm, all vigour and booming voice that most English Lord’s seemed to exhibit. Scott briefly wondered if it was all an act, just as Penny acted quiet and demure when with her parents in public.

“That was part of my decision, yes.”

“And what was the other part?”

“I want to help people sir. And I can still complete a fine education while training. It seemed the best choice for me. And eventually, for others too.”

Hugh smiled, eyes sparkling at his words.

“My word Jeff. You’ve raised quite a philanthropist. And what about you Virgil?”

“I’ll be applying to MIT later this year sir.” Virgil grinned, much more at ease than his brothers. “Finally leave those English school years behind me.”

“You’ll miss me.” Penny retorted automatically.

“You won’t have time to miss me at finishing school LP.”

Scott glanced across at Penny, who was smiling sadly. Finishing school? Wasn’t that where girls were sent to learn what fork to use at banquets?

“Oh? You’re attending finishing school Penny?” Jeff asked, taking a mouthful of coffee.

“Yes. In Switzerland. Almost straight after summer ends.” Penny smiled, her usual radiance not quite reaching her eyes. Scott wondered if she even wanted to go.

“We made a deal with her Jeff,” Amelia stroked her daughter’s cheek fondly, her melodious voice a much more aged version of her daughter’s. “At least two years of finishing school before she’s allowed to find what she wants to do for the rest of her life.”

“Hopefully an ambassador of some sort with all the extra languages she’ll be learning, isn’t that right my girl?” Hugh asked.

“Yes father. I may even take your job.” Penny replied, a spark coming back as she joked. Hugh laughed richly, eyes regarding his daughter warmly.

“She’ll do it too Jeff. Never met another girl so determined.”

“I’m sure Penny will do you proud Hugh.” Jeff smiled at Penny.

“What about you John?” Amelia leaned forward in order to see the youngest Tracy at the table. “What do you want to do after high school?”

“I want to be an astronaut.” John replied with no hesitation. “I want to go into space. Ma’am.” He added as an afterthought.

“You’ve had quite an influence on these boys Jeff.” Hugh mused. “I’ve no doubt your two youngest will surprise the world yet as well.”

Before Jeff could reply, a voice rang through the dining hall, informing them that if the guests would care to make their way outside, they would be able to see a very special display.

“Must be the fireworks. I swear they get better every year.” Amelia beamed, gesturing for everyone to stand. “Come on, come on. We don’t want to miss this do we?”

All seven of them joined the throng outside.

Penny and Virgil grabbed Scott and John, dragging them to the side as all the adults grouped together.

“Come on, just over here.” Penny lead them all to a smaller balcony, just lower than the main one. It was much quieter.

“Thanks Penelope.” John rested his elbows on the railing, “I wasn’t going to be able to see anything over the adults.”

“None of us were, well except for the giant that is Scoot here.” Virgil punched his older brother’s arm lightly.

“Thanks Virg.” Scott rolled his eyes as he turned away, catching sight of the small shiver Penny gave in the cold air. “Oh, here Penny. You can have my jacket.”

Without waiting for her reply, Scott shrugged his suit jacket off and draped it over the girl’s shoulders.

“Thank you Scott.” She replied quietly, her fingers brushing his as she pulled the jacket around her tightly.

Scott smiled widely, only to brought short by Virgil’s annoying grin. Virgil didn’t say a word, simply raised an eyebrow at his brother’s chivalry as the first firework exploded above them.

“Ooh! Did you see it Virg?!” John straightened, eyes lighting up as he watched the sky continue to flash in different colours.

Scott had to admit the fireworks were pretty impressive.

But the fireworks dulled in comparison to the feel of the slender hand carefully slipping into his own, butterflies fluttering like mad in his stomach.

Penny wasn’t sure if she’d made the right decision until she felt Scott’s hand tighten around hers.

Virgil caught sight of his best friend’s smile, the most genuine one she’d shown that evening. Judging by how close her and Scott were standing, Virgil didn’t have to think too hard about what she was smiling about.

The sky might be lit with every coloured firework possible, but Virgil was willing to bet that the real fireworks would be starting between Scott and Penny in the years to come.


End file.
